After six decades of relying on outside sources, the United States is poised to become a consistent net exporter of natural gas . The shale boom and the rush to embrace LNG has fueled the shift, one that will have significant consequences for natural gas prices around the world. In 2016, total U.S. natural gas imports reached 3 trillion cubic feet, the bulk of which came via pipeline from Canada. Month to month, natural gas imports hovered around 250 billion cf, according to data from the EIA . Exports, however, have been shooting up from less than 60 million cf in 2006 to 269 million in January 2017. The ratio of imports to exports has been falling for years, and 2017 will be the year that exports officially exceed imports for the first time since 1957. That date is significant, as it was the year the United States imposed […]